Free Software has to become Free Network Services in order to be relevant in the age of cloud computing. That’s the philosophy of the Autonomo.us group which has brought us the Franklin Street Statement.
They have recently been critiquing the Open Cloud Manifesto, which is a corporate open standards drive spearheaded by IBM:
OCM writes that
“One thing is clear: The industry needs an objective, straightforward conversation about how this new computing paradigm will impact organizations, how it can be used with existing technologies, and the potential pitfalls of proprietary technologies that can lead to lock-in and limited choice.
This document is intended to initiate a conversation that will bring together the emerging Cloud Computing community (both cloud users and cloud providers) around a core set of principles. We believe that these core principles are rooted in the belief that cloud computing should be as open as all other IT technologies. This document does not intend to define a final taxonomy of cloud computing or to charter a new standards effort. Nor does it try to be an exhaustive thesis on cloud architecture and design. Rather, this document is intended for CIOs, governments, IT users and business leaders who intend to use cloud computing and to establish a set of core principles for cloud providers. Cloud computing is still in its early stages, with much to learn and more experimentation to come. However, the time is right for the members of the emerging cloud computing community to come together around the notion of an open cloud.”
Some reactions by Autonomous have been discussed in their mailing list:
Bradley Kuhn said that “I have read their manifesto, and it seems quite corporate focused (which may explain why they have gotten so many corporations to endorse it), and doesn’t seem to espouse many overlapping principles to the Franklin Street Statement.”
Andrew Lewman has attempted a draft which may appear in final form on their blog by the time this appears (we are post-dating):
“In the news recently is the Open Cloud Manifesto It is light on content, and not much of a manifesto at all. I believe this is a fine start, but perhaps more marketing than an actual working group. The name “Open Cloud Manifesto” follows the trend of prepending Open in front of everything. We have Open source. Open computing. Open standards. And now, Open Clouds. I encourage this trend. However, it needs to go one step further. The Open Cloud statement needs to take the next step and include Free network services. The Franklin Street Statement by the Autonomo.us working group lists the characteristics of an optimal free network service.
The FSS lists some key ideas for Service Providers:
– Choosing Free Software for their service
– Release customizations to their software under a Free Software license.
– Allow the Users to control their own data
These can be easily incorporated by the group behind the Open Cloud Manifesto.
We are not talking about free as in zero cost. Free Networks, much like Free Software, can charge money for their efforts; including support, development, desired customizations, etc. However, the software is Free as defined by the Free Software Foundation (http://www.fsf.org). You as a user of a Free Network Service have the ability to download the software and setup the same service on your own. The majority of users will not do this, for the simple fact they are opportunistically lazy. I will happily use, and pay, for your service so long as I have the same control over my data as if I ran it myself; on my own hardware, or I suppose, my own “cloud”.
By empowering the users with control over their own data, allowing them to clone your service using the same software as the provider, and using Free Software; you offer a Free Network Service. As a User, this is your data, entrusted to a third party in many cases, you should demand nothing
Reasonable coverage and links here.